Merry Christmas! We have had a very eventful past month. I'm not sure where to start. As soon as Thanksgiving was over, it was time to start getting ready for Christmas. The day after Christmas came and I started to decorate for Christmas. Is it just me or did Christmas really sneak up on us this year? This year has gone by so fast I can hardly believe it. With Christmas comes practicing for our annual Christmas Program. My children sang Jingle Bells, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, and Lets Go to Hollywood. They did an amazing job. Ben also was in the program. He was Santa in one skit and a pig in another skit. He is such a trooper! I did get Strep (I get it every year) about a week before the Christmas Program. It seems like I always get it at the beginning of a weekend, and so I'm unable to make it to the clinic until the following Monday. I'm just happy I had it and got over it. Oh, that reminds me, I forgot to take my medicine.
On Christmas Eve we went over to Donni and Robs and had a brunch with the teachers who didn't go home for Christmas. There were about 6 teachers including Ben and I that stayed. It was extremely delicious. There was biscuits and gravy, cinnamon rolls, egg bake, and french toast bake. Also, I have to mention the amazing coffee. I have just become a coffee drinker. Now some of you may say I have crossed over to the dark side, but I must say I don't know how I survived 26 years of my life without it. Ben and I got some coffee beans when we first came to Alaska three years ago. Well, you guess it...that's what I have been drinking. Three year old coffee. While it isn't bad for expired coffee, the coffee at Donni's was amazing. I think it was Hazelnut. Yumm-o! We attended Christmas Eve service at our church that evening. Some of our good friends at the church gave Ben and I our first Ulu knife. It is what Eskimos use to cut fish in the summertime's. You can also use them for cutting up veggies and other meats. Ben and I came home and made some pretzels from a box that our good friend Amanda Hunt gave us. We proceeded to watch Home Alone. Oh, don't let me forget....I washed dishes like a mad women as Ben took a shower. Our water had FINALLY come back on after being off for a couple of days. Usually it isn't that bad because we keep up on our dishes, but this time I HAD to bake my Christmas cookies without water. So, needless to say, I had a mound of dishes that had just been staring at me for a couple of days. In this time we were also able to get our laundry done. PRAISE GOD for water. It's the little things people.
Over the past couple of weeks I have reflected on how much I love life here. There are SO many things that make life difficult here, but in those difficulties comes uniqueness and some serious character building. For example, going back and forth between having water or not having water. It is something we deal with every winter and it is just a part of life I guess. Something that I enjoy about living in the Bush is the simplicity. Everyone lives in a small house compared to the Lower 48. Nobody judges anyone on what they wear, what they look like, or what they have. We find joy in the little things....like running water. :) The other part that I cherish the relationships we have with the Natives.
Relationships definitely deserves its own paragraph. The people here for the most part are so friendly and genuine. You've probably heard me talk about this person before, but I must bring her up again. Mollie Long is my classroom aide and second mother. I'm good friends with all of her daughters and have taught some of her grandchildren whether through tutoring or in my classroom. I don't know where Ben and I would be without this family. It is as if they have adopted us. This Christmas, Mollie gave Ben and I this AMAZING quilt that she made in just a day and a half. I was down at their house visiting when she gave it to me. I didn't open it in front of them because I wanted Ben to be there. I'm glad I waited, because when I opened it I got tears in my eyes. Mollie had written on the card that she made it so that we would always remember her whenever we left and to stay warm. :) She is always looking out for us making sure we are dressed appropriately. Anyway, when I had thanked her she had said that she had made one for all of her kids and that Ben and I were like her kids too, so we needed one. The water works began once again. I'm just SO thankful for this woman and the amazing family that her and her husband have brought up. Ben and I decided that whenever we leave and start a family of our own, we will visit Mountain Village every summer. We are hoping to drive the Alcan every summer and fly to Mountain Village so that our kids can see what life is like out here. We want them to experience a little of the simplicity that we have experienced.
In just 2 days Ben's dad, and two brothers-Nathan and Ryan will be coming to Mountain Village. We are SO excited to have them here. We love showing this amazing place off. We live in a part of Alaska that most people will NEVER see, or quite honestly, people don't even know about. I'm sure the boys will be out on the snow machines having fun in the Alaskan wilderness. Hopefully they come across a Moose and other wildlife. Fortunately for the bears and my sanity, they are hibernating at this time of the year. The boys will be here from the 27th thru the 2nd of January. Ben is going back to Anchorage to spend a couple of days with them before they head back to the lower 48. We had them spend a couple of days in Anchorage before they go home because winter in Alaska is very UN-predictable. If the weather is poor and the little bush planes can't fly then you are pretty much stuck. This way, if they get stuck in Mountain Village for a couple of days they will still have time to make it back to their jobs. While in Anchorage Ben will probably do some shopping and eating out. Ben just found out the McRib is going to be at McDonald's when he's in town, so is is BEYOND excited! Going into Anchorage is always fun for me in theory, but usually after being there for a day I'm ready to go back to my simple life. The simple life that has no traffic, no lines, no hustle and bustle. So, I will stay back and watch our dog Moose.
Anyway, I'm sorry if this blog was a bit mumble jumble. I know I always say it, but I will say it again...I hope to blog more frequently. Maybe that could be my New Years Resolution? I've never really made New Years Resolutions, so maybe this could be my first. Well, I take that back....I made a resolution once to win the lottery...well, that didn't quite happen. :)
Thank you all for your amazing support. We love love love hearing from you!
Our emails are: Anne: anne.harvey7@gmail.com
Ben: b.harvey4@gmail.com
My messy kitchen after baking cookies all day.
